diff --git a/roles/kalite/tasks/install.yml b/roles/kalite/tasks/install.yml
index 674b18f03..09f9858dc 100644
--- a/roles/kalite/tasks/install.yml
+++ b/roles/kalite/tasks/install.yml
@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@
     name: setuptools==44
     virtualenv: "{{ kalite_venv }}"    # /usr/local/kalite/venv
     virtualenv_site_packages: no
-    virtualenv_command: /usr/bin/virtualenv
+    virtualenv_command: virtualenv    # Traditionally /usr/bin/virtual/env -- but install_python2.sh (for Ubuntu 23.10+) sets up /usr/local/bin/virtualenv
     virtualenv_python: python2.7
     extra_args: "--no-use-pep517 --no-cache-dir --no-python-version-warning"
   #when: not (is_debian_9 or is_debian_10 or is_ubuntu_16 or is_ubuntu_17 or is_ubuntu_18 or is_ubuntu_19)
@@ -50,7 +50,7 @@
     version: "{{ kalite_version }}"
     virtualenv: "{{ kalite_venv }}"
     virtualenv_site_packages: no
-    virtualenv_command: /usr/bin/virtualenv
+    virtualenv_command: virtualenv
     virtualenv_python: python2.7
     extra_args: "--no-cache-dir"
 
diff --git a/scripts/install_python2.sh b/scripts/install_python2.sh
index d61b125d7..f4cf75a19 100755
--- a/scripts/install_python2.sh
+++ b/scripts/install_python2.sh
@@ -16,7 +16,12 @@
 export DEBIAN_FRONTEND=noninteractive
 ARCH=$(dpkg --print-architecture)
 
-apt -y install virtualenv
+# Older version http://launchpadlibrarian.net/651276954/virtualenv_20.19.0+ds-1_all.deb
+# unfortunately drags in newer 20.23+ version of python3-virtualenv, preventing Python 2.
+# So let's try pip: (which installs to /usr/local/bin)
+apt -y install python3-pip
+pip install virtualenv==20.21.1 --break-system-packages
+#apt -y install virtualenv
 # https://github.com/iiab/iiab/pull/3535#issuecomment-1503626474
 #apt -y install media-types libffi8 libssl3